Abergavenny: Timber lorry driver fined for wrecking family home

Christopher Wiggins lost control of his lorry as he carried 26 tonnes of tree trunks

A lorry driver has been convicted of careless driving after causing substantial damage to a 120-year-old stone cottage.

Christopher Wiggins, 42, was transporting 26 tonnes of tree trunks when he lost control of his vehicle.

The truck rolled over and spilled its load, causing extensive damage to the cottage in Llangua, Monmouthshire in May 2021.

The householders said they felt lucky to be alive.

Wiggins, of Splott, Cardiff, was cleared of dangerous driving by a jury but was convicted of careless driving at Cardiff Crown Court.

The front and side walls of the cottage were destroyed in the crash

Bryony Francis, 53, was in the kitchen when the forestry truck hit her home after taking a corner of the A465 at speed.

"I tried to open the door from the kitchen into the front room but it wouldn't open so I knew the ceiling had come down," she recalled.

"It looked like a bomb site and there were tree trunks everywhere."

She added that the location was a "real accident black spot".

"The speed limit is 60mph (96km/h) but it is at a part of the road where is goes from being wide to very narrow in a very short space."

'Very extensive damage'

Recorder David Warner told Wiggins: "You drove your lorry laden with 26 tonnes or thereabouts of tree logs in such a way that your vehicle rolled over and caused very extensive damage.

"You drove it in a way which was careless in that you entered that corner at a speed which was, even by your own admission in an interview, probably too high for that vehicle with that load on that bend.

"I accept that this was more of an error of judgement rather than a deliberate course of action or reckless behaviour."

The truck crashed through the front corner of the home, shedding its load of tree trunks

Harry Baker, representing Wiggins, said: "He was working with an agency but he's had to put his work on hold while this has been dealt with and the work has been drying up for him.

"He has told the agency about this conviction and he's been told that it's very unlikely that he's going to get any work now.

"Essentially he's got no income now."

Wiggins, of Lady Margaret Terrace, Splott, was fined £700, ordered to pay £620 prosecution costs and a £70 victim surcharge.

He avoided a driving ban after the judge endorsed his licence with eight penalty points at Cardiff Crown Court.

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